Tetrameristaceae Hutch.

Timothy M. A. Utteridge and Laura V. S. Jennings (2022). Trees of New Guinea. Kew Publishing. Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew

Distribution

A small family with two genera: the genus Tetramerista Miq. is found in western Malesia (especially Borneo), but there have been reports of a possible population in central Papua New Guinea (Takeuchi pers. comm.). The other genus, Pentamerista Maguire, is endemic to the Americas.

Milliken, W., Klitgard, B. and Baracat, A. (2009 onwards), Neotropikey - Interactive key and information resources for flowering plants of the Neotropics. http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0

Morphology General Habit

Mangrove trees to 15m tall, 15-20cm in diameter (above buttresses)

Morphology Trunk

Trunks with enlarged fluted boles, buttresses 1.5-2m tall (average high tide level), 1.5m in diameter, formed by the emergence of short-born roots

Morphology Leaves

Leaves spirally arranged, clustered at apex of branches; blades sessile simple, slightly asymmetric, oblanceolate, margins entire with deciduous glands along longest edge, pair of glands at base of leaf, coriaceous; veins obscure; stipules absent

Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers

Flowers solitary, in leaf axils or terminal, sessile; bracteoles 2, subtending and enveloping flower bud, pink; sepals 5, free, ovate, adaxially concave, proximal half of adaxial surface covered in glands; petals 5, free, narrow, elongate, dehiscent, white to pinkish red; stamens 5, appressed to longitudinal grooves of ovary, just surpassing style; anthers 5, basally sagittate, narrow; ovary superior, carpels 2, syncarpous, locules 2 (sometimes 1 by abortion), 1 ovule per locule, placentation axile; style longitudinally grooved, stigma barely bifid

Morphology Reproductive morphology Fruits

Fruit indehiscent, woody, turbinate, corrugated, strongly beaked, covered with resinous pustules; seed 1, endosperm absent, embryo enlarged, well developed.

Note

Notes on delimitation: Pelliciera Planch. & Triana has in the past been placed in the Theaceae or Ternstroemiaceae. Currently it is either regarded as being a family in its own right or merged with the Tetrameristaceaesensu lato (Lens et al., 2005). Pelliciera and Tetrameristaceae both have unusual glandular pits on the inner surface of the sepals and one single ovule per locule (Cronquist, 1981). The wood anatomy studies have also found them to be closely related (Lens et al., 2005). Number of genera: Monogeneric and monospecific: Pelliciera rhizophorae Planch. & Triana

Distribution

Pelliciera rhizophorae Planch. & Triana is mostly restricted to the Pacific coast of Central America and northern South America, from the Gulf of Nicoya, Costa Rica to the Esmeraldas river, Ecuador. A few scattered populations on the Caribbean coasts of Nicaragua, Panama and Colombia. Native.

Diagnostic

Key differences from similar families: While it may be confused with Tetramesitaceae to which it is closely related, characteristic features of Pelliciera are: Large, showy, solitary flowers with two subtending bracts that envelop the flowerbud. The leaves are asymmetric with deciduousglandular teeth along one margin. The fruits have one seed. Distinguishing characters (always present): Mangrove trees. Trunks with fluted buttresses. Leaves spiral, simple, asymmetrical. Extrafloral nectaries and dehiscentglands along one of the leaf margins. Flowers 5-merous, showy, star-like. Fruitindehiscent, turbinate, woody.